Room 3

Based on the characters from the series Room
2 (created by neo_star_queen)

Note: It is not necessary to read Room 2, but it would help you understand
this story much better.

The sun hung low in the sky, its vibrant rays shooting
out gorgeous sapphire and crimson hues, and enclosing the entire town of Neopia
Central in its warmth. The chirps and twitters coming from various sorts of
creatures flying overhead could be perceived throughout assorted neighbourhoods.
One neighbourhood in particular had Pawkeets that were tweeting so noisily,
it awoke a young adolescent girl whose name was Alison Keros.

"Urgh, why do the Pawkeets have to do that every
single morning?" she grumbled, her cozy warm pillow lying on top of her head.

Alison was feeling exhausted, even after her
lengthy nine-hour snooze. Yesterday has been an incredibly hectic day at the
pound. Six humans had come to adopt pets from Room 2, and filling out forms
and taking interviews took up a lot of time and energy. Ever since she had adopted
Garth the blue Gelert, sixteen pets had left Room 2, leaving her with only six
to take care of. Alison sometimes wished that more pets could come to Room 2.
It was starting to get a bit lonely in there.

"ALISON! WAKE UP! WAKE UP! I WANT TO VISIT ROOM
2!" Garth was crying out these strident remarks while hopping around in the
hallway, tremendously excited for the trip to Room 2 that Alison had promised
him for two weeks.

Alison groaned and slowly stood up from her snug
bed. "I'm coming Garth," she softly grunted, scratching her dishevelled hair
at the same time.

The moment she stepped out of her bedroom, Garth
began jumping on her animatedly, his eyes wider then usual and his ears perked
up.

"Come on Alison! Let's go! I want to go!" the
Gelert exclaimed, an uncanny hyperactive expression plastered onto his face.

Alison grinned and softly scratched the outside
of his right ear. "Don't worry, we'll be there shortly," she explained. "Just
give me some time to take my shower and eat some breakfast."

"Awwww," Garth moaned. However, he did not object
and instead, raced to the living room and began playing with his beloved plushies.
Alison smiled as she watched her pet run to the area and play excitedly with
his toys. This is definitely going to be a busy day, she silently said
to herself.

**************

Thirty minutes had passed and Alison and Garth were now entering the Neopian
Pound. Garth was clinging enthusiastically onto Alison's arm with a wide smile
spread across his features. The pair walked up to the reception desk where Ms.
Uni was stationed. The pink Uni looked up from the shuffle of papers she had
been sorting out and smiled.

"Hello Garth," she said cheerfully. "Come to
see your friends?"

Garth nodded blissfully and then turned to Alison.
"Mom, can I go to Room 2 now? Pretty please?" he pleaded, trying to fill his
face with pout so that Alison would let him go.

Alison grinned and said, "Go right away sweetie.
I'll be there with you shortly."

Garth beamed and then hopped off, darting down
the hallway and into Room 2. The bang of the door being shut could be perceived
throughout the reception area.

"Little fella' is pretty excited to play with
his friends, eh?" Ms. Uni asked, her eyes glinting with heaps of cheerfulness.

Alison sighed. "Yep," she replied. "He's been
buggin' me about it for two weeks straight. Really excited to play with Edward
and Gaarg."

"Hehe, I can tell," Ms. Uni remarked.

"I still can't believe that Mrs. Burzherlin lady
threw them back away at the pound," Alison commented, a frown now replacing
her once cheerful expression.

"ALISON!!! ALISON!!!"

These noisy cries were suddenly coming from the
corridor, each one sounding more urgent then the prior one.

"Garth?" Alison whispered questioningly.

And there he was, gliding across the flooring
and halting to a stop right when he was facing Alison. "Mom! There's a girl
in Room 2 and she's saying that she's now the monitor! But you are! When I told
her this, she wouldn't believe me!"

"Yeah! Why?!" Garth abruptly yelled, his voice
sounding furious and cheerless at the same time.

Ms. Uni sighed and began explaining, "Too many
pets have left Room 2 and the management thinks that you can handle larger groups,
especially ever since the bake sale. Nina, a young girl who's new here has taken
your position because she's a beginner. There are many pets in Room 3 and you'll
be able to handle them more easily."

Alison thought that the reason why she had been
changed position was absolutely preposterous. When the explication had ended,
rage and fury swiftly began taking over her sentiments. The adolescent felt
like she wanted to break something; make someone else go through the misery
that she was painfully feeling at this moment.

Ms. Uni noticed Alison's enraged expression and
in the pit of her stomach, she felt absolutely terrible. "I-I'm so sorry Alison,"
the Uni whispered, her eyes beginning to grow watery. "I-I really don't know
what to say."

Alison sighed, wiping off the tears that were
beginning to trickle down from her eyes. "It's all right. It's not your fault,"
she softly said, wishing she could leave the Pound and go back home where all
was safe and cozy.

"Shall I lead you to Room 3?" Ms. Uni asked,
beginning to stand up from her wooden chair.

Alison shook her head and rejected the offer.
"It's all right," she added. "I know the way there."

Alison slowly dragged her feet out of the reception
area and down the hallway, feeling incredibly nauseous in the head. Not one
piece of her wanted to enter that room but nevertheless, she forced herself
to continue on. While walking down to Room 3, Alison discerned the small area
of Room 2. Its door was slightly open, showing a total of merely eight pets.
Garth had already entered the room and was telling his friends the terrible
news. Alison couldn't bear to listen to the pets' remarks about how much they
wanted her back. She quickly strode away from the room and in a matter of seconds,
was at the entrance to Room 3.

Before she entered, Alison took in a long deep
breath and said to herself, "Good luck Alison."

The girl slowly opened the door and stepped inside,
swarms of pets suddenly enclosing her and the rest of the room.

"Hey! Who are you?!" a blue Kyrii suddenly shouted
from the back of the room.

Alison let out a feeble smile and said, "Alison
Keros. I'll be your monitor from now on."

"Where's Kasey?!" a quivering voice cried not
too far off from Alison's left side.

"I-I'm not sure. Ms. Uni didn't explain me to
this."

Shouts and cries of enragement and wretchedness
instantly began erupting from Room 3.

"I WANT KASEY BACK!"

"ME TOO!"

"ME THREE!"

"LET'S GET THIS LOSER OUT OF HERE!"

Salt-ridden tears began slowly forming in Alison's
eyes. She felt as if her knees were on the verge of collapsing, and her eyes
were going to burst into a million tears.

"What is going on here?" a voice suddenly yelled
from the entrance.

Alison swiveled her body around and caught sight
of Ms. Uni, stationed at the front door with a worried look glued onto her face.

"She stole Kasey!" a Blumaroo cried from the
back, thrusting his large finger toward Alison.

Ms. Uni let out a humble half-smile and paced
towards the frightened adolescent.

The Uni gazed at the Blumaroo with a considerate
expression. "Don't worry," the Uni said. "Alison did not steal Kasey. She is
simply a replacement. Kasey has unfortunately left, but she sends her kisses
and hugs to you all, and told me that one day she will visit you."

Strident groans emerged from every single one
of the pets in Room 3. Some had fat tears scattered across their faces while
others were fuming deeply with dark shades of crimson covering their features.
The sight alone shattered Alison's heart into a thousand pieces.

"I…WANT…KASEY…NOOOOWWW!!!!!" a Gelert suddenly
shrieked from the back of the room. Dozens of tears were gliding down his cheeks
and his fur was incredibly scruffy. He looked absolutely hysterical, as if he
was going to smash himself against the wall any moment now.

At last, Alison had had enough. She couldn't
bear to watch the sight any longer. Tears of her own made their way down her
cheeks as pushed her way through the crowds of pets.

When Alison arrived at the front door, she cried,
"I'm done! I'm never going to come back here again!"

And with that, the adolescent ran down the dark
corridor, her sneakers pounding down on the marble flooring, making the cherished
memories that she once held in her mind fly away like a thin wisp of smoke.

**************

"A-Alison? Are you awake?"

"Mmhhmm."

Garth let a deep sigh escape from his lips. He
gazed at his owner with a distressed expression and patted her head gently.

"You've been asleep for days," he whispered.

Alison's eyes swiftly flew open and she abruptly
jumped up from the ruby-shaded couch that she had been lying on.

"DAYS?!" she yelled, her mouth more broad then
usual.

Garth nodded and peered down at the ground. "Everyone
at the pound's misses you," he said, his tone carrying a bit of shakiness.

Alison groaned deafeningly and plopped back down
on the couch. The memories of the prior events began swiftly flooding her mind,
causing her to feel absolutely dreadful.

"I bet those pets in Room 3 are glad that I'm
outta' off their sight," she groused, brushing a strand of her wavy brown hair
away from her eyes.

Garth blinked and a single tear fell down his
fairly smudged cheek. "They really miss you," he whispered.

Alison frowned and asked, "Why would they miss
me?"

Garth shrugged and said, "Why don't you find
out for yourself?"

Alison heaved a deep sigh. "Fine, you win," she
asserted. The adolescent unhurriedly pushed herself up from the sofa and subsequently
walked out of the house, where she began making her way down to the Neopian
Pound.

**************

"Alison, is that you?" Ms. Uni immediately inquired the moment the young girl
stepped inside the Pound.

Alison nodded. Her entire face seemed rather
weary and groggy, not what Ms. Uni was used to seeing.

As the young adolescent gazed at Ms. Uni, she
sniffed loudly. A moment of long and thoughtful silence followed. However, the
silence quickly shattered when Alison suddenly cried, "I'm so sorry, Ms. Uni!
I shouldn't have run off like that! What I did was a childish thing to do and
I deeply regret ever doing it! Please forgive me! PLEASE!"

Ms. Uni was a bit startled by the sudden comment.
However, she quickly regained her focus and nodded understandingly.

"Don't worry Alison," she whispered. "I don't
blame you one bit. The kids in Room 3 were definitely not acting on their best
behavior. In fact, they have an apology prepared for you."

Alison peered up at Ms. Uni with a surprised
expression. "They're planning on apologizing?" she asked interestingly.

The pink Uni smiled and nodded. "Right that way,"
she whispered, her polished hoof pointing down the hallway.

Alison didn't even bother glancing a second time
at Ms. Uni. She simply paced down the hallway and halted to a stop at the front
door of Room 3. It was odd, for there was no sound coming from inside the room.

As Alison twisted the doorknob, she asked, "Is
any-?"

"SURPRISE!!!"

Alison instantly flew back and landed on the
marble floor with a large THUMP!

"What is going on here?!" she cried, her tangled
hair covering her broadened hazel eyes.

The blue Blumaroo who had blamed Alison before
for snatching Kasey suddenly stepped out of the large crowd, and slowly advanced
towards Alison. He stuck out his grungy paw and let Alison seize on to it and
pull herself up.

"Here," he softly said, his left paw carrying
a gorgeous bouquet of Three Red Roses.

Alison softly gasped and unhurriedly placed the
bouquet in her hand. "It's wonderful," she whispered, shedding a single salt-ridden
tear that quietly dripped down her cheek.

"Ms. Uni suggested it for us," the Blumaroo grunted,
his eyes peering down at the ground.

Alison smiled and to her surprise, draped her
arms around the Blumaroo and gave him a long and tight hug. "Thank you so much,"
she whispered in his left ear.

The Blumaroo grinned and replied, "You're welcome.
By the way, my name's Chester, and welcome to Room 3."

Inside the pit of Alison's stomach, all the stress
and anger that had once been bundled up in a tight know had now disappeared
and was feeling relaxed like it had always felt.

"LET'S GIVE A BIG CHEER FOR ALISON!" a green
Elephante suddenly boomed at the far end of the room.

Tears had now completely soaked Alison's cheeks
and her eyes had grown extremely puffy. She wanted to experience this single
moment for the rest of her life, not having to care what was in store for the
future.

The adolescent swiveled her body around and instantly
beamed at the sight that her eyes swiftly caught. It was Gaarg, who had a wide
smile plastered onto his features and blissfulness glinting in his large eyes.

"What are you doing here, Gaarag?" Alison inquired,
a surprised expression hinting in her look.

"Didn't you hear the news?" Daarag asked, surprised.
"Room 2 has been transferred with Room 3 since there's so little of us!"

Alison gasped with a tone of amazement and cried,
"This is incredible!"

The entire room shot out another round of strident
applause's and cheers, and finally settled down for the day.

As the noise began simmering down and the pets
began playing with their friends, the familiar-looking Gelert who had had a
hysterical temper tantrum in front of the whole room suddenly paced towards
Alison and clumsily plopped himself down on a wooden stool alongside of her.

"Look," he whispered, "I really regret what I
did before. It's just that…having Kasey gone was such a big shock to me and
I was really close to her." His face peered up at Alison. "Will you forgive
me?" he added softly.

Alison nodded. "Of course I will," she said kind-heartedly.
"I don't blame you for that tantrum. I would be a bit peeved at myself if that
happened to me."

The Gelert's face broke into a grin. "Whew! I
feel really relieved!" he exclaimed.

Alison gently scratched the back of his head
and said, "Don't ever be afraid to tell me what's on your mind."

The Gelert bobbed his head and up and down. "Name's
Raytu by the way," he said gleefully.

Alison beamed and said, "Well Raytu, it'd be
lovely to your friend."

"I agree Alison," Raytu replied back.

And with the new bond of friendship that the
two had suddenly created, Alison and Raytu stood up from their chairs and made
their way to the other pets, knowing both in each other's mind that this would
not be a depressing beginning for Room 2 and Room 3. No, it would a wonderful
beginning.

The End

Author’s Note: There you have it, Room 3! Hope you enjoyed the story very much
so. Any comments are extremely appreciated and will be replied to as quickly as
possible. Until next time!

Other Note: For those who are wondering, I did have neo_star_queen's permission
to write this story.

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